Kim even claims to have stolen $120,000 from the briefcase of a prominent governor who is President Kim Dae Jung's economic adviser.

In a country where memories of bribery scandals that brought down former presidents are still fresh, the scandal has South Koreans wondering who to believe, the suspect or their own officials.

"The politicians are all thieves," taxi driver Kim Il Won, 48, scoffed as he launched into a harangue about corruption. "They wouldn't claim how much they lost, because the politicians would have [gotten] their wealth through corruption in the first place."

Raising eyebrows even more is how the thief's story came to light. While in jail awaiting trial, the suspect sent a letter disclosing his allegations to the opposition Grand National Party, which went public with the charges.

Many publications now are making hay with the scandal. "The thief is shouting out and the victims are hush-hush," blared a recent headline in the Hankuk newspaper. Some of the 19 alleged victims say they aren't missing anything.

Police Chief Kyung Hwan claims to have lost only 8 million won (about $7,000) in cash that he said he was saving from bonuses, not the 50 million-plus won the thief claims he found in 58 envelopes, newspaper reports say.